Elizabeth Hofacre has turned out to be a gold mine to investigators of political corruption at the IRS. The Cincinnati-office specialist didn’t take kindly to having the entire mess dumped on the shoulders of her colleagues and herself, and has made it plain in depositions that this was no low-level innovation. The Hill became the latest media outlet to peruse the transcripts, and added a little more to the growing public record of the targeting effort’s genesis in Washington rather than Cincinnati:

An IRS staffer in Cincinnati told congressional investigators that a Washington official was the driving force behind the targeting of Tea Party organizations in 2010, and showed unprecedented interest in those groups tax-exempt applications.

Elizabeth Hofacre, the Cincinnati staffer, said that she started receiving applications from Tea Party groups to sift through in April, 2010. Hofacres handling of those cases, she said, was highly influenced by Carter Hull, an IRS lawyer in Washington.

As it turns out, the scapegoating wasn’t the only thing that angered Hofacre. Normally, the IRS doesn’t interfere with rank-and-file agents when they choose targets for their investigation and make decisions on applications. When it came to Tea Party and other conservative groups, Hofacre suddenly found that her autonomy had been stripped, which she found “demeaning”:

Hofacre said that she integrated questions from Hull into her follow-ups with Tea Party groups, and that Hull had to approve the letters seeking more information that she sent out to those organizations. That process, she said, was both unusual and demeaning.

One of the criteria is to work independently and do research and make decisions based on your experience and education, Hofacre said, according to transcripts reviewed by The Hill. Whereas in this case, I had no autonomy at all through the process.

I thought it was over the top, she added, in interviews held by investigators in both parties from the House Oversight and Ways and Means committees. I am not sure where it came from, but it was a bit unusual.

In the end, even Hofacre ended up getting stalled and stonewalled by Hull, she claims. Hofacre got so tired of dealing with angry applicants who couldn’t fathom why the IRS kept stalling that she took another position. Hofacre also told investigators that requests for donor lists were “appalling,” but those requests came after she had already left.

The “low-level employee” defense is crumbling in both fact and perception. Gallup’s latest survey shows that 59% of all adults believe that high-ranking IRS officials knew full well about the targeting of conservatives, and even a plurality of Democrats do too:

Nearly six in 10 Americans believe that high-ranking IRS officials in Washington were aware the IRS had a practice of targeting conservative political groups for greater scrutiny in recent years. One-quarter think knowledge of this was mainly limited to the agency’s office in Cincinnati where the mishandled applications for tax-exempt status were processed.

Almost as many — 50% — believe that high-ranking Obama administration officials knew about it, too. That includes 54% of independents. Barack Obama’s approval rating on handling the issue is just 32/58, and with 77% of Americans believing this to be a serious matter (49% say very serious), that’s a bad position to be in — especially with two NSA scandals being added to the Scandalabra this week.

It sounds to me like Valerie Jarrett freaked out after 2010 and wasnt going to let it happen again in 2012. She put her Gestapo to work to save Barrys nads.

That’s exactly what happened. They never talked about it, they just got very busy destroying the opposition. In a way it’s ironic cause look at the sh&^ they are facing now. Almost worth him winning just to watch the fall in such a spectacular way.

They never talked about it, they just got very busy destroying the opposition.

au contraire.

"Everyone not with us is against us and they better be ready because we don't forget. The ones who helped us will be rewarded, the ones who opposed us will get what they deserve. There is going to be hell to pay"

9
posted on 06/08/2013 8:59:32 PM PDT
by UCANSEE2
(The monsters are due on Maple Street)

Thats exactly what happened. They never talked about it, they just got very busy destroying the opposition. In a way its ironic cause look at the sh&^ they are facing now. Almost worth him winning just to watch the fall in such a spectacular way.

This doesn't bother his voter base. They secretly want your whole family sent to the gas chambers. If anything, Barry isn't anywhere near cruel enough for them.

The left has publicly been trying to tell anyone who would listen that the Tea
Party is done, finished, kaput. Turns out the Tea Party is the only real movement they thought had a chance to challenge their neo-com rise.

We’re doing something right.

16
posted on 06/08/2013 9:12:05 PM PDT
by Liberty Valance
(Keep a simple manner for a happy life :o)

But .. her orders come directly from the TOP .. maybe orders is too strong a word, but maybe it was her idea and he just agreed with it.

I know he’s involved; indirectly or otherwise. He was telling crowds for months that the repubs were bad for the country, or bad for democracy, etc. etc. etc. It’s no wonder people were so willing to be fed that pablum to the point of actually causing harm to fellow citizens.

I’m at puke already with these people.

17
posted on 06/08/2013 9:17:25 PM PDT
by CyberAnt
("America is the greatest nation on the face of the earth" (in spite of BO))

Actually, there was a lot of talk from the usual suspects about how everyone should “fear” the Tea Party, they were huge, extremist and wanted to take America back to the 1950’s and put women back in the kitchen...but thanks to the IRS the Tea Party barely EXISTED!

I’m going to hold off regarding her as one of the culprits in this scandal. I would not welcome her photo being broadcast all around right now. From what has been released of her deposition it seems she was trapped in a bad situation and is now able to give valuable information.

Cindy Thomas was her department chief and Paz and Lerner were the next higher ups. Hofacre had to take orders from Hull in D.C. Who could Hofacre complain to, Thomas?, Paz?, Lerner? She might have contacted congress, but that would have been her only out, and that would have been taking a huge personal risk. Hofacre even started to look for another job because of the situation.

If anyone is soiling their pants in fear of being silenced its mr. Hull. I can’t possibly see how he decided all this on his own. Whoever he listened too is going to tire of sweating while waiting to see if he flips.

33
posted on 06/09/2013 1:25:44 AM PDT
by wiggen
(The teacher card. When the racism card just won't work.)

I don’t believe for one minute the leftists and Holders people that populate the cubicles of the government agencies aren’t willing participants in this, they just don’t want to get all the blame for something that their bosses asked them to do.

38
posted on 06/09/2013 4:51:46 AM PDT
by newnhdad
(Our new motto: USA, it was fun while it lasted.)

Hull was not acting alone, although sources say he was the first to begin handling tea-party applications in Washington in March 2010. His colleagues in the Technical Unit were also involved in guiding the Cincinnati office. Hull reported to Michael Seto, the manager of the Exempt Organizations Technical Office, where some 40 lawyers offered advice to IRS agents across the country. Though not all of those lawyers worked on the tea-party cases, a handful certainly did.

Oh yeah, all kidding aside, did you know Valerie was born and raised as a toddler in Iran? Her father was a doctor and she was raised there till the age of 5 which may explain why she is possessed by the devil today.

"...the Weathermen, when not engaged in group sex, committed such revolutionary acts as parading with a Viet Cong flag through a local park on Independence Day and spray-painting the walls of a high school with the slogans, "Off the Pigs," "Viet Cong Will Win," and "F#$k U.S. Imperialism."..."

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